Alabama bingo trial begins with opening arguments

Eight months after their arrests in a State House corruption case, VictoryLand owner Milton McGregor and eight other defendants will get to make their case to jurors beginning this morning.

Prosecutors and defense lawyers will make opening statements this morning in the high-profile case that rocked Montgomery with charges that votes on an electronic bingo bill were bought and sold in the Alabama Legislature.

"We feel good. We feel prepared," McGregor lawyer Joe Espy said.

"We feel very strong, very strong that the jury will find not guilty," Espy said.

They are accused of offering legislators a $1 million-a-year public relations job, campaign contributions and campaign assistance such as polls in exchange for their vote on the gambling legislation. The bill, which did not pass the Legislature, would have held a statewide referendum on whether McGregor, Country Crossing owner Ronnie Gilley and a few other operators could offer electronic bingo machines at their establishments.

Gilley originally was a defendant in the case, but he struck a plea deal with federal prosecutors and is expected to be a key witness for the prosecution.

An overwhelmingly female jury will decide the fate of the nine defendants. The panel, selected Thursday, consists of 12 women and two men. The judge selected five alternates -- all of them women -- to sit in on the case, which is expected to last for most of the summer. Lawyers have estimated the trial could take between two and four months.

"I do think we got a fair and impartial jury and both sides worked hard to do it," Espy said.

Espy said he wasn't considering gender when the defense team struck people off the jury.

"I was looking at questionnaires, the answers, their reaction in court and who I thought would be fair and impartial," Espy said.

Former federal prosecutor Ron Brunson said gender probably was one of the last things the lawyers considered.

"They got rid of the people they didn't want and this is the result," Brunson said.

Today's opening statements are expected to last most of the day. U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson has set aside more than six hours for the prosecution and nine defense teams to make their opening statements.

The opening statements are the first opportunity for each side to set out their theory of the case to the jury.

Federal prosecutors are expected to describe the case as a simple one of exchanging things of value -- often campaign contributions -- for a yes vote on the bill.

The case is not about whether gambling is good or bad for the state of Alabama, Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Feaga told potential jurors earlier in the week.

But defense lawyers are expected to argue that what the government calls bribes and criminal conspiring actually are legitimate campaign contributions and typical political maneuvering.

"Our position is that any campaign contribution was legitimate support. You don't support people who don't support you. .¤.¤. The bill had merit," Espy said.

Brunson said prosecutors have to lay out their case this morning while being careful not to oversell the case if they don't have the evidence to back it up.

"I think they (opening arguments) are especially important to the prosecution. They are the first thing out of the box," Brunson said.